Star Player confident that United can ‘beat’ Noisy neighbors on derby day

Manchester United’s record signing Paul Pogba says United can stop Manchester City from breaking another Premier League Record

This weekend will mark the biggest clash of the season yet in the English Premier League. The top two teams go head-to-head with either team’s win meaning huge implications to the league table. A win for City would mean they go 11 points clear at the top of the table. On the other hand, a Manchester United victory would reduce that margin to just 5 points. More importantly, it will show the entire league that City can be beaten despite being at full strength.

One big miss for United at the weekend would be Paul Pogba. The Frenchman picked up a 3 match suspension against Arsenal last week. Despite being on the sidelines himself, Pogba believes that United can win the derby.

Pogba is optimistic ahead of the derby

Pogba, who was under fire last week by the Twitterati for his comment stating that he wants Manchester City’s players to get injured to provide them with a better chance at winning the derby, got suspended from playing the derby when he received a red card in the 3-1 win over Arsenal Last week.

Pogba receiving a red card against Arsenal

“I have one hundred percent complete trust in the team,” Pogba said.

“Even if I’m not there, I will be there giving them energy. There will be a big atmosphere in the stadium. It’s a big game, with a big team and big players.These are the games you want to play. Unfortunately, I won’t be playing but I will be there to help the team mentally.

He added,“Obviously, we are playing City and in this moment we need the points and we need to win. It’s an important moment, an important game, so like I said I am disappointed.”

Pogba played in the mid-week Champions League win over CSKA Moscow, providing an assist to Romelu Lukaku who netted just his second goal in his last 12 games in all competitions.

Manchester city’s unbeaten run comes to an end

Manchester City’s unbeaten season finally came to an end with the 2-1 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk in the mid-week Champions League fixture. City’s game seemed far from their best, as they succumbed to their first defeat of the season.

Pep’s starting lineup in champions league included two teenagers Phil Foden and Adarabioyo, as City had already qualified for the last 16 and topped their group, no matter the result of the game.

Guardiola suffers his first defeat of the season

Author’s Take

Manchester City is no longer just the ‘noisy’ neighbour. They have ascended to the top of English football and have even overtaken United since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement. They will go into the derby as slight favourites and full of confidence despite their winning run coming to an end in midweek.

It was clear that Pep played a B-team against Shakhtar, giving rest to the majority of the regular first team players. There is no doubt that the Manchester Derby on Sunday will be one of the biggest games of the season, with City looking to extend their lead to double points at the top of the table.

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